The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has included the historic center of the Ukrainian city of Odessa, located in the south of the country, in its World Heritage List on Wednesday to «recognize its universal value».
UNESCO has indicated in a statement that, with this inclusion highlights the global duty to «protect» the place in question, especially in the midst of Russian invasion of the territory. In this sense, it has stressed that according to the Convention on the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, the 194 countries that have adopted the document «must avoid taking measures that endanger this type of property and cooperate to ensure its protection».
He also indicated that this new status gives Kiev the opportunity to «request financial and technical assistance at the international level to achieve adequate protection and restoration, especially in case the city is damaged».
The application for the port city of Odessa to be included in the UNESCO World Heritage List was submitted by the Ukrainian authorities in October 2022, but the decision has been taken after accelerating the process precisely because of the armed conflict.
«These actions are part of UNESCO’s action plan for Ukraine, which has already involved the mobilization of $18 million to cover costs in education, science, culture and information,» the text states.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
